Archive for category Human Rights
Bersih to cops: Name route, we will follow
Posted by Kit in Bersih, Elections, Human Rights, Police on Thursday, 30 June 2011
Joseph Sipalan | Jun 30, 11
Malaysiakini
Despite the string of arrests and dire warnings from the police, the Bersih 2.0 committee today sought to make peace with the men in blue and asked for their help to make their July 9 rally a peaceful event.
Bersih 2.0 chief S Ambiga said they had a “very friendly” half-hour meeting with inspector-general of police Ismail Omar, where the latter expressed his concerns over public safety if the rally were to go on as planned.
“We told him that we will do everything we can to make sure it is peaceful…
“That is why we suggested that the police decide on the route we should take and we will follow their directions,” she told journalists at the Bukit Aman police headquarters after the meeting Ismail.
Ambiga, who was accompanied by Bersih steering committee member Maria Chin Abdullah during the meeting, said the IGP was silent on their suggestion, but remains cautiously optimistic. Read the rest of this entry »
Bersih T-shirts seized, seven activists held in raid
Posted by Kit in Bersih, Election, Human Rights, Police on Wednesday, 29 June 2011
By Shannon Teoh
June 29, 2011 | The Malaysian Insider
PETALING JAYA, June 29 — About 20 policemen, at least one of whom was armed with an assault rifle, raided the Bersih secretariat here today, confiscating hundreds of the movement’s iconic yellow T-shirts and bringing seven in for questioning.
Seven staff members of women’s rights non-governmental organisation Empower, which hosts the secretariat for the group pushing for electoral reforms, were initially questioned at the premises that had been blocked by about 10 police vehicles, including a Black Maria.
Police then seized several items contained in seven plastic bags and five boxes as well as five banners before taking the workers to the Petaling Jaya police district headquarters. Read the rest of this entry »
Bersih T-shirts illegal, declares Hisham
Posted by Kit in Bersih, Human Rights, Police on Wednesday, 29 June 2011
By Shannon Teoh
The Malaysian Insider
Jun 29, 2011
PUTRAJAYA, June 29 — Home Minister Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Hussein said today T-shirts with messages in support of Bersih have been outlawed because they were related to an illegal assembly.
“The Bersih T-shirt is related to an illegal assembly, then whatever they are wearing is illegal,” he told reporters.
Police officers have been arresting activists and opposition members wearing Bersih T-shirts ahead of next weekend’s rally and counter rallies organised by Umno Youth and Perkasa, all of which the government has said will not be given police permits. Read the rest of this entry »
Freedom, imagined
Posted by Kit in Bersih, Human Rights, Police on Wednesday, 29 June 2011
By Adrian Chew
June 29, 2011 | The Malaysian Insider
JUNE 29 — Imagine this.
Tens of thousands of us came from all over to exercise our fundamental rights. In our midst were foreign elements; their presence threatening and encouraging at the same time.
The organisers of the event gave us clear instructions: Wear shirts of a certain colour. Be at the designated staging sites at the appointed time.
Alternative routes were suggested in case the authorities decided to block access to the sites. Many arrived hours ahead and camped inside their vehicles, counting down the hours to the event we’d all anticipated for so long. Read the rest of this entry »
National laureate probed over ‘seditious poem’
Posted by Kit in Bersih, Human Rights, Police on Tuesday, 28 June 2011
Joseph Sipalan
Malaysiakini
Jun 27, 11
National laureate A Samad Said today decried police investigations into his poem recital during a Bersih 2.0 event and said the authorities are now treating poetry as a weapon.
The septuagenarian was hauled up for about 90 minutes of questioning today at the Dang Wangi district police station on his poem recited during the June 19 ‘launch’ of the Bersih 2.0 rally.
(Refer to the poem Unggun Bersih below)
“Poetry has now become something extraordinary; it has now become a weapon,” he told a throng of journalists jostling to hear the soft-spoken man. Read the rest of this entry »
DAP calls for immediate release of the 30 PSM members and an end to ridiculous police charade
Posted by Kit in Bersih, Human Rights, Police on Sunday, 26 June 2011
DAP calls for the immediate release of the 30 Parti Sosialis Malaya (PSM) members, including Sungai Siput MP Dr. Michael Jayakumar in Penang yesterday and an end to the ridiculous police charade that they are trying to revive communism.
I could not believe my eyes when just before being called to the rostrum to speak, I read the online news portal The Malaysian Insider a completely unbelievable news story, entitled:”Bersih supporters nabbed for waging war against King”.
The Yang di Pertuan Agong, the Prime Minister and the government-of-the-day can count on my loyalty and patriotism and that of the DAP in any treasonous war against the King, but we will not lend ourselves to any fictitious claims to justify gross abuse of power and blatant human rights violations against patriotic Malaysians to prevent them from peaceful and democratic exercise of free speech and free assembly. Read the rest of this entry »
Police intensify clampdown on pre-rally roadshow
Posted by Kit in Bersih, DAP, Human Rights, Police on Sunday, 26 June 2011
by Regina Lee
Malaysiakini
Jun 25, 11
The police have intensified its efforts to clamp down on polls watchdog Bersih’s pre-rally roadshow as it kicked off nationwide yesterday.
Supposed to begin in Uptown market in Shah Alam last night with a series of speeches, the police had cordoned off the commercial centre as early as 5pm as well as erecting roadblocks around the city.
The law enforcers made their presence felt by bringing along three police trucks and 50 police personnel together with scores of other plainclothes police officers.
One of the speakers, PKR Youth deputy chief Khairul Anuar Ahmad Zainuddin, was quickly arrested and whisked off by the police 10 minutes after he arrived, even though he was “doing nothing” in the area, according to him. Read the rest of this entry »
Have cops work with Bersih, Lim tells Hisham
Posted by Kit in Elections, Hishammuddin, Human Rights on Saturday, 25 June 2011
By Shazwan Mustafa Kamal
June 25, 2011 | The Malaysian Insider
KUALA LUMPUR, June 25 — Home Minister Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Hussein should direct the police to end its “hostile” stance towards the Bersih rally and work with its organisers instead, Lim Kit Siang said today.
The DAP parliamentary leader said mutual co-operation between the two would ensure a peaceful assembly on June 9. Read the rest of this entry »
Don: Cop’s Bersih ban is against constitution
Posted by Kit in Constitution, Elections, Human Rights on Saturday, 25 June 2011
By Hazlan Zakaria
25 June 2011 | MalaysiaKini
Renowned constitutional law expert Abdul Aziz Bari, hit out at the cops for their unilateral banning of the Bersih 2.0 rally planned for July 9, pointing out that the police crackdown on the gathering is not only illegal but unconstitutional.
“They have acted illegally because they have publicly stated that they are not going to issue a permit. As a public authority they can only make a decision after an application has been made,” the International Islamic University Malaysia (IIUM) lecturer told Malaysiakini. Read the rest of this entry »
Wearing Bersih 2.0 T-shirt is more dangerous than Osama bin Laden?
Posted by Kit in Election, Hishammuddin, Human Rights on Saturday, 25 June 2011
The Home Minister Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Hussein should stop the madness where a person can be detained by the police for wearing the Bersih 2.0 T-shirt, as if he/she is more dangerous than Osama bin Laden.
Last night, the police have started arresting people for wearing the Bersih 2.0 T-shirt.
This are tweets about the arrest in Shahj Alam last night:
This is not the reaction of the police in a developed democracy but the response of a repressive and undemocratic government which is afraid of the voice of the people. Read the rest of this entry »
Seeing crackdown, Pakatan battens down hatches
Posted by Kit in Bersih, Elections, Human Rights on Thursday, 23 June 2011
By Clara Chooi
The Malaysian Insider
Jun 23, 2011
KUALA LUMPUR, June 23 — Pakatan Rakyat (PR) leaders are bracing themselves for a possible repeat of the infamous 1987 Ops Lalang crackdown when election watchdog Bersih 2.0 stages its mass protest in the capital this July 9.
The leaders, many of whom were among those arrested during the crackdown, told a press conference today that they feared the government would again flex its muscles and embark on a spree to detain all leaders participating in the rally.
“As former Ops Lalang detainees, we must ask if they are preparing for an Ops Lalang 2,” said DAP advisor Lim Kit Siang, one of the 1987 detainees. Read the rest of this entry »
‘Would Hisham have arrested Onn Jaafar?’
Posted by Kit in Bersih, Elections, Human Rights on Thursday, 23 June 2011
By Yow Hong Chieh
The Malaysian Insider
Jun 23, 2011
KUALA LUMPUR, June 23 — Lim Kit Siang has reminded Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Hussein that his grandfather, Datuk Onn Jaafar, pioneered peaceful protests in Malaysia, and called on the home minister to ensure the smooth running of Bersih 2.0.
The DAP parliamentary leader pointed out that Umno was born in 1946 out of non-violent anti-Malayan Union protests helmed by Onn, and asked if Hishammuddin thought his grandfather’s actions constituted illegal assembly.
“Would Hishammuddin have arrested his grandfather Datuk Onn Jaafar for organising peaceful mass rallies and meetings resulting in formation of Umno if the latter had been alive today?” he asked in a statement today.
Lim also slammed Hishammuddin for putting electoral watchdog Bersih on the same footing as Malay rights group Perkasa by announcing yesterday that the police would summon Bersih, Perkasa and Umno Youth for planning separate rallies on July 9.
He said while Bersih has declared its commitment to peace, the Perkasa counter-protest was “a different kettle of fish” that was “born to create strife and unrest”. Read the rest of this entry »
Refugee swap: Still no human rights commitment
Posted by Kit in Human Rights on Monday, 20 June 2011
By Aliran
June 20, 2011 | The Malaysian Insider
JUNE 20 — Asylum seekers in Malaysia have never had any guarantee of safety in this country as Malaysian immigration laws do not recognise those granted official UNHCR refugee status. This month, as in years past, is the month of the refugee. World Refugee Day falls on 20 June, a day significant to all refugees and asylum seekers hoping to be freed from fear and danger to life and liberty.
Yet, what Malaysia has to offer asylum seekers has always been less than a safe place. Asylum seekers and refugees constantly remain at risk of arrest, detention and human rights violations in this country, which some see as a shade better than where they came from. Read the rest of this entry »
One refugee without hope is too many
Posted by Kit in Human Rights on Monday, 20 June 2011
By Nora Murat
June 20, 2011 | The Malaysian Insider
JUNE 20 — Whirring helicopter blades, cast a mini tornado over the mass of humanity below. Outstretched hands from rooftops reached towards the magnificent soaring machine.
As its silhouette shrunk into the horizon, the many bodies pressed against one another slumped in exhaustion. Nevertheless, hope like morning dew on the parched surface of nature continued to balm their panic.
Read the rest of this entry »
Despite counter protest, Bersih gathers pace on Facebook
Posted by Kit in Elections, Human Rights on Friday, 17 June 2011
By Shannon Teoh
The Malaysian Insider
Jun 16, 2011
KUALA LUMPUR, June 16 – Support for the Bersih 2.0 rally on July 9 appears to be unaffected by the threat of clashes with the anti-Bersih counter protest in the streets of the capital city.
The Pakatan Rakyat-backed (PR) demonstration calling for free and fair elections has faced loud opposition from the right-wing Malay ground led by Perkasa, which has said that it is “ready for any eventuality.”
But as at 5pm today, the official Bersih Facebook group has over 14,300 likes, growing by more than a thousand in the last 24 hours, with nearly 300 more people confirming they will attend the march, which has close to 2,200 confirmed participants on its Facebook page.
In contrast, the anti-Bersih page now has 368 likes, 150 more than yesterday. Read the rest of this entry »
Why Does Australia Want to Send Refugees to Malaysia?
Posted by Kit in Foreign, Human Rights on Tuesday, 14 June 2011
By Marina Kamenev/SYDNEY Tuesday, June 14, 2011
Time
Between 2003 and 2004, Marion Le, a Canberra-based lawyer, made regular trips to the remote island of Nauru in the South Pacific. But she wasn’t going for a beach holiday. At the time, Nauru was part of the so-called Pacific Solution, Australia’s policy of processing and detaining asylum seekers arriving by boat in offshore detention facilities.
From 2001 to 2007, thousands of asylum seekers were in offshore detention centers while Australian immigration officials decided their fate. Le, who helped many migrants file successful asylum claims to Australia, was among the Pacific Solution’s many critics in Australia and abroad, saying the system was both a human rights violation and a breach of international law. After former Prime Minister Kevin Rudd came into office in 2007 and closed the centers on Nauru, Papua New Guinea’s Manus Island and the Australian territory of Christmas Island, Le recalls feeling “relief” that the government was finally listening to the plight of those that had been confined. (Watch a video about asylum seekers in South Africa.)
Read the rest of this entry »
DAP says nude squat case ‘humiliating’, demands Home Ministry response
Posted by Kit in Human Rights on Tuesday, 14 June 2011
By Shazwan Mustafa Kamal
June 14, 2011
The Malaysian Insider
KUALA LUMPUR, June 14 — The DAP has demanded that the Home Ministry respond to reports that two Singaporean women were handcuffed and made to do squats naked by Malaysian immigration officials.
Ipoh Barat MP M Kulasegaran said that the act was “humiliating” and “ridiculous,” while Bakri MP Er Teck Hwa said the incident would give other countries the perception that Malaysia was a “lawless” country.
“You cannot do this, why subject these women to this form of interrogation, it is humiliating,” Kulasegaran told The Malaysian Insider.
Read the rest of this entry »
Cancel invites to Mugabe, Bashir, DAP tells Putrajaya
Posted by Kit in Foreign, Human Rights on Tuesday, 14 June 2011
By Shazwan Mustafa Kamal
June 14, 2011 | The Malaysian Insider
KUALA LUMPUR, June 14 — The federal government should cancel invitations to Zimbabwe President Robert Mugabe and Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir for an international economic forum here, the DAP has said.
The two presidents are scheduled to attend a forum to be held in Putrajaya from June 19-21.
Ipoh Barat MP M Kulasegaran said today that both leaders had an alleged track record in their respective countries of purported human rights violations, and charged that by inviting them, Malaysia would be seen as “indifferent” to the plight of the citizens of these countries. Read the rest of this entry »
Denied entry, Bersih chief sues Sarawak government
Posted by Kit in Constitution, Human Rights, Sarawak on Tuesday, 14 June 2011
By Debra Chong
The Malaysian Insider
Jun 14, 2011
KUALA LUMPUR, June 14 — Election watchdog chief Datuk Ambiga Sreenevasan has filed a suit against the Sarawak government for barring her entry into the East Malaysian state two months ago, saying the move is against the Federal Constitution.
“Yes filed and leave application will be heard 13 July,” the Coalition for Fair and Free Elections (Bersih 2.0) chairman told The Malaysian Insider via a text message.
Sarawak and Sabah are allowed to deny entry even to Malaysians under the agreement to form Malaysia in 1963 with Malaya and Singapore, but must give a reason in doing so. Read the rest of this entry »
Malaysia trails in religious freedom and other rights, says new survey
Posted by Kit in Human Rights on Monday, 13 June 2011
By Yow Hong Chieh
The Malaysian Insider
KUALA LUMPUR, June 13 — Malaysia lags behind the rest of the world in protecting freedom of religion, expression and other basic rights, managing only to place 59th out of 66 countries surveyed by the World Justice Project (WJP) for its Rule of Law Index 2011.
Low scores for freedom of religion, expression, assembly and privacy also meant that Malaysia placed second to last in its income group, which includes other upper-middle-income countries like Russia, Brazil, Mexico and Iran.
The report noted, however, that Malaysia ranked first among 19 income peers in terms of security, on par with countries such as France and Belgium, despite the prevalence of police abuse.
Read the rest of this entry »
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